Today was a nice and low-key, which was a great change for us, with no big incidents or stresses. Sophie had another x-ray first thing, and awhile later her surgeon stopped by to let us know the x-ray showed fluid still remaining. It looked better than yesterday, but he didn't feel she was ready to have the tube removed yet. So... we wait another day. We're all willing to wait just as long as necessary to ensure that there's no lingering fluid that could possibly cause any trouble once the tube comes out.
Later in the morning, Sophie's nurse let us know that it would be ok for her to leave her room and be off the suction (that is hooked to her tube) for half hour increments if she wanted to take a walk and check out the play room. At first, Sophie was really excited about the idea, but after Adam and I had finished our breakfast and started talking to her about going, she had lost some of her energy and was feeling uncomfortable. She wanted to wait a bit before heading to the playroom.
She ate her lunch and then had a nap. She was sleeping when Brianna stopped by for a visit, and then my dad and Ben showed up. It was fabulous to see Ben again. Adam and I have missed him incredibly. He ran right in, gave us hugs and kisses and said, "I missed-ed you!" We all hung out in the room until Sophie woke up, then my dad and Brianna headed out. Then Adam and I started talking about going to the play room.
At first, Sophie was reluctant to get out of bed. Her side (where the chest tube goes in) was giving her quite a bit of pain, and getting in and out of bed can be pretty uncomfortable for her. However, the nurse came in and talked her into it (it wasn't really an option - the doctors really want her to be getting up now, as it can help drain out the last of that stubborn fluid) and off we went. Adam took charge of Ben, the nurse rolled the IV stand, and I held Sophie's arm and carried the chest tube collection device. It was quite a process to get her down there, but she walked the whole way and did a great job. This was the first time she's walked more than the few steps it takes her to get to her bathroom. She was pretty unsteady at first, but got better as we went.
In the playroom, Sophie painted with syringes and Adam played cars with Ben. Sophie had such fun, and it was great to see her enjoying herself so much. We couldn't stay too long, but she made two paintings and told us she was glad she'd gotten up and gone. After we got back to the room, it was time for Ben and I to leave. I had promised him a quick shopping trip, then I had to drop him off with my grandmother for the night.
I enjoyed my alone time with Ben - it is incredibly hard to have a child in the hospital and be fair to the one who is not. Ben is too little to spend much time with us here, and he's very lucky to have so many family members who are willing to take care of him for us while we're here... but still I feel like we are neglecting him. I talked with him a lot about why we are all split up right now, and he seemed to understand as much as could be expected. I will feel so much better when we're all together again.
While I was gone, Sophie and Daddy hung out together and Sophie ate her dinner. Right now we're all huddled around her bed having a movie night together. Adam borrowed Mary Poppins from the library here and we're watching that and relaxing a bit before bedtime.
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